A first round upset is brewing between the Portland Trail Blazers and the New Orleans Pelicans, as Anthony Davis and company are halfway done in their goal of eliminating the Blazers. Will they take a step closer towards sending Portland out of title contention? Or will the Blazers dig deep and fight hard enough to avoid falling down a 0-3 hole?
Register here to make your pick
Betting Preview for Portland Trail Blazers vs New Orleans Pelicans NBA Western Conference Round 1 Game 3 on April 19 2018
Where: Smoothie King Center
When: Thursday, April 19, 2018, 9:00 PM EST
Line: Portland Trail Blazers (spread) vs New Orleans Pelicans (spread) – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: NBATV
Betting on the Portland Trail Blazers (+3)
Are the Blazers on a Dame-light saving time? We ask because Damian Lillard has not been a factor to this team so far in the playoffs. After scoring a highly inefficient 18 points in Game 1, Lillard went back to hoisting bricks with a 7-for-18 shooting line from the floor in Game 2. The Blazers might also want to give Jusuf Nurkic’s minutes back with Zach Collins not proving to be an effective Anthony Davis stopper. Nurkic played in only 15 minutes in Game 2 and scored 13 points. Head coach Terry Stotts might also want to rid Evan Turner off the starting lineup after Turner laid a fat egg in 20 minutes on the floor as the team’s starting forward. Mo Harkless could be a suitable replacement for Turner. Harkless scored 11 points off the bench in his first game back since March due to a knee issue. Portland is 5-5 ATS in its last 10 road games.
Betting on the New Orleans Pelicans (-3)
Anthony Davis is the Pelicans’ best player, but on Tuesday, Jrue Holiday and Rajon Rondo stole that title away from The Brow at least for a day. Holiday dropped 33 points on the Blazers in Game 2, while Rondo went into playoff-Rondo mode with a near triple-double of 16 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists. He even sank two threes so you could just imagine what kind of night the Pellies were having. As for Davis, he finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Davis still attracted plenty of attention from Portland defenders opening spots for his teammates, who will have to continue exploiting holes on Blazers’ defense. Davis is averaging 28.5 points so far in these playoffs. The Pelicans are 3-1 ATS in their last four home games against the Blazers.
Writer’s Prediction:
New Orleans wins, 111-107.
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